Pianoforte-action.



Patented lune I2,- I900. G. M. GUILD.

PIANOFORTE ACTION. [Application med Feb. 16, 1900.

2 Sheets-Sheet 2.

(llodBL) UNITED STATES PATENT OFFICE.-

GEORGE MORSE GUILD, OF BOSTON, MASSACHUSETTS, ASSIGNOR TO LOUISE ADAMS GUILD, OF SAME PLACE.

PlANOFORTE-ACTION.

SPECIFICATION forming part of Letters Patent No. 651,799, dated June 12, 1900.

Application filed February 16,1900. Serial No. 5,529. (ModeL) To all whom it may concern:

Be it known that I, GEORGE MORSE GUILD, a citizen of the United States, residing at Boston, in the county of Suffolk and State of Massachusetts, have invented certain Improvements in Pianoforte-Actions, of which the following is a specification.

Myinvention has for one object to simplify and improve the construction of pianoforte- IO actions, whereby more powerful blows of the hammer are secured, as well as a more perfect and rapid repetition of the same.

A further object of my invention is to produce a more delicate, responsive, and elastic I5 touch and also to render the action less expensive, more durable, and less liable than heretofore to be affected by climatic changes.

To this end my invention consists in certain novel features and combinations of parts,

as will be hereinafter more fully described,

and specifically pointed out in the claims.

In the accompanying drawings, Figure lis a front elevation of an upright-pianoforte action constructed in accordance with my invention. Fig. 2 is a side elevation of the same. Fig. 3 is a side elevation of the same wit-h the parts in the position which they occupy when the key is depressed. Fig. 4 is a plan view of a portion of the rail against 0 which the damper-spring rests. Fig. 5 is a perspective view of the hammer-retracting spring. Fig. 6 is a horizontal section on the line 6 6 of Fig. 2.

In the said drawings, 1 represents the cen 5 ter rail, to the top of which is secured the flange 2, tothe rear end of which is pivoted the damper-lever 3, carrying the damper 4, and to the front end at 5 the hammer-butt 6, the lower portion.of which is properly shaped and constructed to form the jack-butt 7.

8 represents the hammer, 9 the hammerstem, and 10 the ham mer-rail, all constructed in the usual manner.

12 is a rail having secured to its rear side 5 a flange 13, to which is pivoted a lever 14,

which rests upon and is supported by an adjusting screw-sleeve 15, turning on a screw projecting upward from the inner end of the key 16, fulcrumed at 17, the upper end of the screw-sleeve 15 bearing upon a cushion 18, applied to the under surface of a projection 19, extending downward from the lever 14. To the lever 14 is pivoted the lower end of an upright lifter-rod 20, forming what I term the jack extension, to the upper end of which is pivoted at 21 the jack 22, the upper end of which lies directly beneath the jackbutt 7, the parts 20 and 22 forming what I term a combination-jack. The joint at 21 by which the two parts 20 and 22 are connected together admits of movement or flexure in one direction only, like a rule-joint, by reason of a tongue or extension 23 on the jack abutting against the jack. extension below said joint when the two parts are in line, thus forming a stop. A stiff spring 24, secured at its lower end to the jack'extension, bears on the outer side of the tongue 23, and thus holds its cushioned lower end firmly against the jack extension, whereby the two jointed parts of the combination jack are stiffened and held firmly together in a straight line as one piece when raised by the depression of the key 16 through the medium of the lever 14, previously referred to, thus enabling the hammer to strike a powerful blow, as required.

The screw-sleeve 15 is preferably provided with holes to enable it to be conveniently turned by a pin or other implement to effect the adjustment of the parts to compensate for wear.

11 denotes the hammer-retracting spring, which is composed of wire, its lower end bein g secured to the jack and its upper end having an offset 25,which enters an oblong curved recess 31 in the hammer-butt, said recess havingalongitudinal V-shaped groove in its front wall, within which fits the upper semicircular end of the spring 11, which is thus held in 0 place within the recess 31. To the jack extension 20 is pivoted an arm or link'26, the opposite end of which is pivoted to the flange 27 of the rail 28, said arm 26 having a slight downward inclination from its pivotal point 5 on the flange 27 when the hammer is thrown back from the string, as shown in Fig. 2, and serving to assist in holding the parts 20 and 22 in a straight line as they are raised by the key 16.

When the jack is raised by the depression of the key to operate the hammer, it will be seen that the end of the arm 26 which is pivoted to the jack extension 20 will move upward in the are of a circle, and, owing to its downward inclination, it will in reaching a horizontal position slightly force back the jack extension 20. As soon, however, as this arm 26 passes above the horizontal line it will at first produce only a very slight forward movement of the jack, which is consequently kept squarely beneath the jack-butt during the greater part of its upward movement, as required to enable the hammer to strike a powerful blow on the string; but as the arm 26 continues to rise it will draw forward the jack with a rapidly-increasing movement,at which time a projection 80 on the jack is brought into contact with the inclined face of an ad justable throw-off button 32, secured to the end of a downwardly-inclined regulatingscrew 33, passing through and supported by a rail 34, whereby as the jack is still further raised by the short remaining movement of the key it will be quickly moved forward on its joint 21 against the resistance of the stiff spring 24, its upper end being thus instantly withdrawn from under the jack-butt to relieve the hammer and allow it to recede from the string. The projection 30 does not come into contact with the button 32 until the instant before the hammer touches the string. Hence the jack remains under the jack-butt until after the blow has been struck, when it is instantly thrown off its seat into the position shown in Fig. 3, the upper end of an arm 35, projecting from the jack, being at that instant brought into contact with an adjustable back-stop 36, secured to an arm 37, projecting from the ham iner-butt 6, by which means the hammer is caught and prevented from rebounding, said arm 35 being held firmly in place to lock the hammer by reason of the rigidity with which the two portions 20 and 22 of the combination-jack are held by the combined action of the arm 26, projection 30, and button 32, a perfect back-catch being thus provided, by means of which the hammer after striking a powerful blow is held close to the string ready for a rapid repetition of the blow, if desired.

To keep the jack directly beneath the jackbutt during the greater part of its upward movement, or until the hammer has nearly reached the string, and then cause the jack to be suddenly withdrawn with a quick outward movement, is a desideratum in piano-actions, to attain which is the principal object of my invention, which is accomplished, as above described, by the combined action of the arm 26 in describing the arc of a circle in its upward movement in connection with the projection 30 and button 32, the rapidly-increasing forward movement of the jack extension 20, due to the varying angle of the arm 26 as it rises, causing, the projection 30 to act very quickly on the inclined face of the button 32, which produces a very sudden outward movement of the jack from under the jack-butt at the instant required.

As the key is depressed an increased tension is put upon the stiff spring 24 by the movement of the jack on its joint 21 into the position shown in Fig. 3, whereby as the jack commences to fall on the release of the key the spring 24 will act on the arm 23, thus throwing back the jack and causing its upper end to be instantly reseated beneath the jackbutt the moment the key is relieved of the pressure of the finger, the parts being thus ready for another blow when the hammer has receded but a very short distance from the string, whereby I am enabled to produce a most perfect and rapid repetition of the note by the manipulation of the key and at the same time cause the hammer to give a fine and perfect blow every time it strikes the string. By making the projection 30 of the jack of suitable length a considerable lever age is secured, so that when said projection is brought into contact with the button the stiff spring 24 is forced back with so little resistance that it'is hardly noticeable when the key is depressed and is not felt at all when the blow is struck. It will be seen that by the employment of the connecting-arm .26, swinging in the arc of a circle, in connection with the combination or two-part jack and the stiff spring 24, the upper end of the jack is kept constantly under the jack-butt until the hammer reaches a point about one-eighth of an inch from the string, when by the contact of the projection 80 with the button 32, as previously described, the hammer is re lieved and thrown back to be caught by the back-catch, where it is held securely at a distance of about one-quarter of an inch from the string in a position to allow of the note being repeated with the greatest facility. Furthermore, a powerful and perfect blow is obtained at the instant of the contact of the projection 30 with the button 32, for the reason that the arm 26 keeps the jack in its proper position and effectually prevents it from prematurely "flying out from under the jaclcbtttt, so that with the front end of the key 16 raised less than one-eighth of an inch from the front-rail cloth the hammer will stand about one-quarter of an inch from the string, enabling the performer to get a fine blow and producinga rapid movement of the hammer in repeating, thus securing more perfect and satisfactory results than heretofore.

Another advantage of my construction is that all the parts above the arm 26 may be of the same size for various sizes of pianos, the only change required to adapt the action for different sizes of pianos being a variation in the length of the jack extension 20.

The rail 28 is preferably supported on brackets 40, upon which it is made adjustable both vertically and horizontally by means of suitable adjusting-screws 41 and 42, the upper screw 41 and the right-hand screw 42 passing through oblong holes (not shown) in said rail, said oblong holes permitting said rail to be moved by the adjusting-screws in either direction, as required, whereby a nice ad justment of the connecting-arm 26 may be obtained to bring the upper end of the jack into the exact position required with relation to the jack-butt.

To the lever 14: is secured an upwardly-projecting arm 43, the upper end of which when the key is depressed is brought into contact with the lower end of the damper-lever 3 to actuate the same at the proper time, a spring 44, which bears against the rail 45, serving to retract said damper when the key 16 is released. This spring 44 is secured to the outer side of the damper-lever 3 at a point below the flange 2 and extends downward to the rail 45, which is provided with a recess 46 to receive the curved end of the spring, and by this construction I avoid the placing of the damper-spring above the flange 2, as has heretofore been customary and which is inconvenient and seriously interferes with the adjustment of said flange.

WVhat I claim as my invention, and desire to secure by Letters Patent, is

1. In a piano-action, the combination with. the hammer and the hammer-butt, the latter having the j ack-butt formed thereon, of a jack having a downwardly-extending lifter-rod pivoted thereto, a key for actuating said lifterrod, and a connecting-arm pivoted at its front end to a rail or support and extending rearwardly therefrom and connected at its inner end to the lifter-rod, said connecting-arm as it moves upward from a horizontal toward a vertical position in describing the arc of a circle, serving to draw forward the lifter-rod and jack as they are raised by the key to operate the hammer, substantially as described.

2. In a piano-action, the combination with the hammer and the hammer-butt, the latter having the jack-butt formed thereon, of a jack having jointed thereto a downward extension or lifter-rod, a key for actuating the same, a spring for stiffening the joint and keeping the jack in line with the lifter-rod as it is raised by the key, and a connecting-arm pivoted at one end to a stationary support and extending rearwardly therefrom an d connected at its opposite end to the jack extension or lifter-rod, said connecting-arm as it moves upward from a horizontal toward a vertical position in describing the arc of a circle, serving to draw forward the lifter-rod and jack as they are raised by the key to operate the hammer, substantially as described.

3. In a piano-action, the combination with the hammer and the hammer-butt, the latter having the j ack-butt formed thereon, of a jack provided with a throw-off projection adapted to contact with astationary stop or button, the jack extension jointed to the jack, a spring for stifiening the joint and keeping the jack and jack extension inline as they are raised by the key, and a connecting-arm having one end pivoted to a rail or stationary support and extending rearwardly therefrom and the other end pivoted to the jack extension, said arm as it moves upward from a horizontal toward a vertical position in describing the arc of a circle, serving to draw forward the lifter-rod and jack as they are raised by the key to operate the hammer, the jack being thereby kept beneath the j ack-butt during the greater part of its upward movement and then suddenly withdrawn with a quickoutward 1n ovement, substantially as described,

4. In a piano-action, the combination with the hammer and the hammer-butt, the latter having the jack-butt formed thereon, of a jack having a downward extension or lifter connected therewith by a joint permitting movement of the jack in one direction only, a spring for stifiening the joint and keeping the jack in line with its extension during the greater part of its upward movement, and a radial connecting-arm pivoted at one end to a stationary support and extending rearwardly therefrom and connected at its opposite end to the jack extension, said arm as it moves upward from a horizontal toward a vertical position in describing the arc of a circle, serving to draw forward the jack extension and the jack with an accelerating forward movement as they are raised'to operate the hammer, and a throw-off device for producing a sudden withdrawal of the jack from the shoulder of the jack-butt when the hammer has nearly reached the string, substantially as described.

5. In a piano-action, the combination with the hammer and ham mer-butt, the latter having the jack-butt formed thereon, of a jack having a lateral throw-01f projection at its lower end, a stationary stop or button with which said throw-off projection is brought into contact as the jack is raised, a downward extension connected with the jack by a joint permitting movement in one direction only and having a spring for keeping thejack in line therewith as it is raised by the key, and a connecting-arm pivoted at one end to a rail or stationary support and extending rearwardly therefrom and connected at its opposite end to the jack extension, said 0011- necting-arm as it moves upward from ahorizontal toward a vertical position in describing the arc of a circle, serving to draw forward the jack as it is raised, substantially as described.

6. In a piano'action, the combination with the hammer and hammer-butt, the latter having the jack-butt formed thereon, of the jack provided with a throw-off projection adapted to contact with. a stationary stop or button, a downward extension connected with the jack by a joint permitting movement in one direc tion only, a spring for stiffening the joint and keeping the jack in line with the jack extension as it is raised by the key, a connectingarm pivoted at one end to a rail or stationary support, and extending rearwardly therefrom and connected at the other end to the jack extension, said arm as it moves upward from a horizontal toward a vertical position in describing the arc of a circle, serving to draw forward the jack as it is raised, and a backcatch for holding the hammer close to the string, substantially as described.

7. In a piano-action, the combination with the hammer and hammer-butt, the latter having the jack-butt formed thereon, of the jack provided with a throw-off projection adapted to contact with a stationary stop or button, a downward extension connected with the jack by a joint permitting movement in one direction only, a spring for stiffening the joint and keeping the jack in line with the jack exten sion as it is raised by the key, a connectingarm pivoted at one end to a rail or stationary support and extending rearwardly therefrom and connected at the other end to the jack extension, said arm as it moves upward from a horizontal toward a vertical position in describing the arc of a circle, serving to draw forward the jack as it is raised, and a backcatch for holding the hammer close to the string, consisting of an arm extending upwardly from the jack, and an arm projecting from the hammer-butt and with which the arm projecting from the jack contacts on the release of the hammer, substantially as described.

8. In a piano-action, the combination with the hammer and the hammer-butt, the latter having the jack-butt formed thereon, of a jack having a downward extension or lifter connected therewith by a joint permit-ting movement of the jack in one direction only, a spring for stiffening the joint and keeping the jack in line with its extension during the greater part of its upward movement, a radial connecting-arm pivoted at one end to a stationary support and extending rearwardly therefrom and connected at its opposite end to the jack extension, said arm as it moves upward from a horizontal toward a vertical position in describing the arc of a circle, serving to draw forward the jack extension and the jack with an accelerating forward movement as they are raised to operate the hammer, a throw-off device for producing a sudden withdrawal of the jack from the shoulder of the jack-butt when the hammer has nearly reached the string, a back-catch consisting of an arm extending upwardly from the jack, and an arm projecting from the hammer-butt and provided with an adjustable button, and a lever pivoted to the lower end of the jack extension and actuated by the key, substantially as described.

9. In a pianoaction, the combination with the hammer-butt provided with an oblong recess havingalongitudinal groove in its front wall, of a hammer-retracting spring connected at its lower end to the jack and having at its upper end an offset, wherebyit is adapted to enter said recess and engage the said longitudinal groove, substantially as described.

10. In a piano-action, the combination with the jack-butt, of the jack jointed to a downwardly-extending lifter-rod and provided on its rear side with a tongue abutting against the said lifter-rod, and a spring secured at its lower end to the lifter-rod and bearing at its upper end against the tongue of the jack, whereby the jack and lifter-rod are kept in line with each other as they are raised to operate the hammer, substantially as described.

11. In a piano-action, the combination with the jack and the lifter-rod or extension jointed thereto, of a rail or support made adjustable both vertically and horizontally, and a connecting-arm pivoted at one end to said lifter-rod and at its opposite end to said ad justable rail or support, substantially as described.

12. In a piano-action, the combination with the damper and dam per-lever, the latter pivoted to the flange 2 of the center rail, of the downwardly-extending spring 44 secured to the outer side of the damper-lever, the rail 45 connected with and supported by the center rail and having a recess forming a bearing for the lower end of the spring 44, the lever 14 operated by the key, and the arm 43 projecting upward from the rear end of the lever 14 and acting directly on the damper-lever to actuate the same on the depression of the key, substantially as described.

13. A piano action substantially as described, the same consisting of the rail 1, flange 2, hammer 8, hammer-butt 6 having the jack-butt 7 formed thereon, the jack 22 with its projection 30, and back-catch arm 35, the back-stop 36 projecting from the hammer butt, the hammer-spring 11 having one end connected with the hammer butt and the other end with the jack, the throw-off button 32, the lifter-rod 20 jointed to the jack, the spring 24 secured to the lifter-rod and hearing upon the lower end of the jack, the radial connecting-arm 26 pivoted at one end to the lifter-rod and at its opposite end to the flange of the rail 28, the lever 14 pivoted to the flange of the rail 12 and having the lifter-rod pivoted thereto, said lever 14 having an upwardly-projecting arm 43, the key 16 acting upon the lever 14, the damper 4, the damper-lever 3 pivoted to the flange 2 and adapted to be actuated by the arm 43 of the lever 14, the rail 45, and the damper-spring 44 secured to the outside of the damper-lever below its pivotal point and bearing at its lower end against the rail 45, all constructed and arranged to operate, substantially as described.

Witness my hand this 10th day of February, A. D. 1900.

- GEORGE MORSE GUILD. In presence of P. E. TESCHEMAOHER, LILLIAN I. BASFORD.

IIC 

